Until 2010, Canadian Geographic had never published an SIP. I am proud to have played a role in convincing them to take the plunge.

The first issue was published on Nov. 1, 2010. It had a retail price of $12.95 (compared to $7.95 for a regular issue). The issue sold 16,146 copies, more than any of the regular issues that year! In fact, it sold 19% more copies than the overall average in 2010. And, because of the cover price, generated 94% more newsstand revenue that the average issue.

On May 2, 2011, they published an SIP on Parks, also at $12.95. This one sold 13,925 copies, which was 3,344 copies or 32% better than their average in 2011 in units, and 114% more in newsstand revenue than the average regular issue.

On October 11, 2011, they published a second Wildlife SIP, this time featuring a Fox on the front cover and Grizzly on the back cover. Again, the cover price was $12.95. It sold 15,644 copies, or 48% better than the average regular issue in 2011, and it generated 141% more newsstand revenue.

In 2012 they have published a Wild Weather SIP, which went on sale April 30, and a Birds SIP which went on sale August 27, 2012, both at $12.95. Too early to say how well they will do, but we will report back when they final out. My guess is that neither the Weather nor the Birds will eclipse the Polar Bear or the Fox. Top predators are the celebrities of nature.

But these high quality, beautifully produced, verticals show the power of the Canadian Geographic brand, and have contributed signifcant single copy dollars to all concerned.

This new SIP fromSportsnet magazine has the look of a gold medal winner… ok, this is Canada, maybe silver. But a winner none the less.

The editor and publisher, Steve Maich, spoke at the PBAA Canada event last week and underscored the importance of quality editorial products. This package sure delivers on that promise.

Here’s what Steve had to say about this issue:

“One thing that makes Canada special is that we really view the Olympics as a window on the world. Sure, we’re cheering mainly for Canadians, but we have huge interest in the accomplishments of great athletes like Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and Jessica Ennis. That created an opportunity for us to celebrate an amazing Games, despite the fact we didn’t come home with a lot of gold medals. Christine Sinclair was the perfect symbol in that way. She turned in an incredibly gutsy performance that the whole country was proud of. We wanted a cover that was celebratory, and she was the natural choice to be the main image. Who cares what colour her medal is? I think our Art Director Jamie Hodgson, once again, captured exactly the spirit we were going for.”

At the recent 8th Annual PBAA Canada event, Anita Baldwinson, Manager, Retail Services, for the NewsGroup, and Ray Argyle, on behalf of the PMC, presented their findings from a research project on the importance of magazines to Canadian consumers. Here’s part of what Anita and Ray shared with the audience:

“With so much media attention on tablets and digital versions of magazines (and books), especially in the last year, it is no wonder that even those in the industry, Retailers, Wholesalers, National Distributors and Publishers, have wondered, is print on its way out?”

“It is this question that sparked questions and conversation at the PBAA Canadian industry conference, a year ago, in 2011. Questions such as: Is magazine readership going digital? Do young people even read magazines? And why do retailers keep cutting magazine space if the category is so profitable?”

“While no one could provide truly definitive answers at the time, what was decided was a that there was a pressing need for the industry to better understand how consumers were wanting to consume magazines and what mind-share digital actually did have. So, the industry came together to sponsor the MARC–Magazines at Retail Canada–project. One year later, we now have answers, along with a package that the industry can use to talk to retailers and feel confident of the viability of print. Like radio continued to exist after the advent of television, so too will print continue to exist and even thrive.”

The MARC project campaign has several vehicles for industry use, which can be found at www.magretail.ca.

The video on the site (Readers Love Magazines: A Canadian Survey near top) is well worth a look.

Industry sponsors: Benjamin News, Coast to Coast Newsstand Services, IPDA, Metro News, News West, PBAA, PMC, Rodale, Rogers Publishing, Sudbury News, TC Media, The News Group, The Monahan Agency and Time Warner Retail Services & Marketing are generally very pleased with the outcome of the study conducted by Leger Marketing and feel this multi-million dollar industry in Canada will continue to provide revenue and profits to the industry that relies on print sales.

PBAA hosted their 8th annual Canadian newsstand conference last week at the Old Mill. One of the keynote speakers was Glenn Morgan, President & CEO, Coast to Coast. Glenn’s presentation…The State of the Canadian Market…deconstructed the recently released MagNet data, referenced his own annual BoxScore report, and looked at a grocery store report from the U.S., produced by Symphony IRI Group, a Chicago-based Market Research firm.

Given that the top line data from both MagNet and recently released ABC Fas Fax reports was rather negative, Glenn took a deeper dive into the data. Some of his findings may surprise you.

Top Line MagNet Data

U.S. titles down 9.2% in units…8.1% dollars

Canadian titles down 6.5% in units…5.2% dollars

Isolating Check Out vs. Main Line

Since the majority of titles are not checkout titles, but reley on mainline displays for sales, this distinction is very important. In 2011, checkout titles were down 7.8%, while mainline titles were down just 4%…a big difference. Weekly titles at checkout played an even bigger role in the macro results, as they were down 8.3% in North America.

Weekly vs. Non Weekly

The negative trend for weekly titles has continued into the first half of 2012, with a 12.9% decline for weekly frequency titles, but just a 4.4% decline for non-weekly…and just a minor .8% decline in revenue for non weekly, thanks to a strong performance on price.

Canada vs. U.S.

Canadian magazines continue to outperform the U.S. titles, in a variety of ways.

While the Canadian population is just 10% of the North American market, Canadian titles represent 14.7% of total single copy revenue and 12.7% of unit sales. Better sales performance, and at higher prices!

It was also pointed out that MagNet does not capture all French Canadian newsstands sales, which means that Canada’s total single copy sales story is even more impressive

Of the 25 best sellers in Canada, 8 or 32% are Canadian produced

Average U.S. cover price $4.58 vs. Average Canadian cover price of $5.45

In 2011, U.S. produced titles were down 8% on Canada’s newsstands, while Canadian produced titles were down just 2.4%

Canadian English Language Titles

Of the magazines sold on Canadian newsstands, Canadian domestically produced English language titles now account for 15.8% of the total. This number continues to improve. It was 15% in 2010, and 13.2% in 2009. This trend is encoraging for our domestic industry.

Hello! magazine was highlighted as the #1 Canadian producer, and #2 overall in Canada, trailing only the venerable People Weekly powerhouse….impressive.

Keeping it Real

Glenn ended his presentation by placing single copy sales in the context of other categories of products that are sold in grocery stores. Using market research from a Chicago-based Market Research firm, Glenn pointed out that 206 of 260 categories measured (or nearly 80% of all categories measured) experienced declining sales. His point being, that with economic conditions being less than robust, particularly in the U.S., that magazines are not the only products that are “challenged.” For example:

Auto Fluids…down 22.8%

Fire Logs/Wood/Starter…down 18.3%

Milk Flavoring/Coco Mixes…down 15.3%

Cough Syrup…down 15.3%

Frozen Juices down 14.6%

Baby Formula down 10%

Diapers down 9.5%

Vegtables down 8.2%

Frozen Dinners down 6.4%

Soup down 6%

Milk down 5.3%

While the challenges faced by weekly titles, and the pressure this puts on wholesalers and retailers, is real, and not to be discounted, Glenn’s point is that magazines “are not alone” in facing sales challenges in a time of economic uncertainity. Certainly no one in the media is saying that vegatables, juice and milk are doomed.

Maryam Sanati, editor, for Toronto LifeSIPs, made a fabulous presentation at the 8th annual PBAA Canada event yesterday. Maryam shared a bit about the history of Toronto Life SIP’s, which started with the Eating & Drinking special. This year they will publish six (6) SIPs, and in 2013 will grow to an astounding collection of seven (7) specials a year.

Here’s what the art Director has to say about the new Stylebook SIP:

“We wanted to capture an urban edge and energy—with a rich, risky black background, an unexpected mix of colours and textures, and a Toronto model with gorgeous (un-retouched) freckles. This city is more stylish and creative than ever before and we wanted to reflect the sophistication of our style scene. We collaborated with many rising stars in fashion, among them our cover photographer, Norman Wong.”—Una Janicijevic, Stylebook art director

The (second annual) Stylebook is scheduled to hit newsstands August 23rd. The cover price is $8.95.

The Stylebook, is a premium newsstand-only publication.

“Equal parts glamorous fashion magazine and shopping bible, Stylebook is the consummate guidebook for fall style in the city. The editors of Toronto Life, along with a jury of style experts, took on the daunting challenge of assembling the coveted list of the 25 most stylish Torontonians. The issue is rounded out with a cross-city guide to the best primping and grooming providers, an exploration of Toronto’s reigning style tribes, hot up-and-coming designers and models, and how the chicest dress, live and entertain, ” according to the press release.

Maryam announced the yet-to-be-unveiled, Toronto Life Cooks, which will be a recipe focused SIP, retailing at $11.95, due out in late September, with a newsstand distribution of 40,000 copies.

Scott Bullock is the the creator of Coverssell.com. Bullock has worked as circulation director for both consumer and B2B magazines including Toronto Life and FASHION. If you have a great cover to share, please send all submissions to
scottbullock(at)rogers(dot)com